Taxi 539 antwortet nicht (1953)

Taxi 539 antwortet nicht: Directed by Phil Karlson. With John Payne, Evelyn Keyes, Brad Dexter, Frank Faylen. A former boxer turned cab driver has to hide from the police when his badgering wife is murdered by the jewel thief she was having an affair with.

“This is definitive film noir where the hero must prove he isnu0026#39;t guilty of a crime and has to deal with the thugs out to frame him and a woman who gets him into more trouble than he ever expected.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eJOHN PAYNE excels as the scowling fighter who has a couple of really well-staged fight scenes with JACK LAMBERT and BRAD DEXTER, outside the ring and in the dark underworld of crime and passion.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe surprise of this low-budget thriller is EVELYN KEYES as an ambitious actress who gets Payne unknowingly involved in her attempt to land a Broadway role wherein she plays a nasty trick on him. Then, to make up for her rash behavior and poor judgment, she sticks by him when he needs a witness to prove he didnu0026#39;t murder his wife, played with relish by PEGGY CASTLE.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eUnder Phil Karlsonu0026#39;s direction, itu0026#39;s all wildly unpredictable with enough sub-plots and twists to make it engrossing from start to finish. Payne was after meatier roles after leaving Fox in all of those pretty boy roles and musicals, establishing a new persona as a tough film noir hero, rugged and ready for the fight. Heu0026#39;s excellent and so are the other players.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eKeyes reveals raw acting talent of astonishing intensity, especially in the key scene where she plays a theatrical trick on him–and the viewer.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAs usual, an actor who once played leading roles at Fox, GLENN LANGAN, is wasted in a minor role. FRANK FAYLEN gives his usual reliable performance as Payneu0026#39;s taxi driver friend.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWell worth watching if youu0026#39;re a film noir fan and donu0026#39;t mind a gritty tale that doesnu0026#39;t pull its punches.”